A gap year is generally a break taken from your studies to work, travel or both.

The most common times to take a gap year are after leaving school (before going to work, college or university), during a college or university course or after you have finished studying. For many people the "gap" can be just a summer.

Another form of gap year is a Career Break. You might have been working for some time but now want to expand your horizons, some companies might even give you time off to have a Career Break! Check out this great article on career breaks.

There are 3 main reasons why people take gap years:

1) It's great fun! You might get to experience another country, culture, language or sphere of life that you might otherwise never see.

2) It can enhance your employability since you have a broader set of life and/or work experiences to draw upon

3) It can form part of your studies, i.e. some courses have work placements built into them

Whatever the reason for you thinking about either a gap summer or gap year, you should get the kind of life-changing and fun-filled education that you can never experience at home.

Wondering what your options are for using your gap? Most commonly:

Travelling and getting to see other places. Many people think of gaps as an opportunity to go back-packing but there loads of other things you can do
Working in one or more jobs will give you skills and experiences you wouldn't otherwise have had. For many "gappers" their experience will include some work along the way to help them pay for the travel.
Volunteering is a great way of getting those valuable and exciting experiences whilst having the opportunity to help others.

To make sure that you get the most out of your gap experience, be confident that you have enough money along the way and to ensure your safety, you need to do some planning before you start. You can make the arrangements yourself (more flexible and might save you some cash) OR get help from one of a number of organisations who specialise in gap experiences (these might cost you a bit more but can help ensure you have a good experience). Only you can decide which is best for you but spend some time researching the options.